From Presidents To Torpedoes: FamilyFest Opens A Door To Piney Point’s Past

PINEY POINT, Md. — Long before families gathered beside the Potomac River for music, food and waterfront activities, the shoreline at Piney Point welcomed lighthouse keepers, watermen, vacationing presidents and Navy personnel testing weapons during World War II.

That history will provide the backdrop for this year’s FamilyFest on the Potomac, scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 12, at the Piney Point Lighthouse Museum and Historic Park.

The free community celebration will bring visitors to a property that has watched over the Potomac River for 190 years — and holds stories stretching far beyond its 35-foot brick tower.

A Beacon Along The Potomac

Built in 1836, Piney Point Lighthouse was the first lighthouse constructed on the Potomac River. It stands approximately 14 miles upriver from the Chesapeake Bay, near the shoals at Piney Point and Ragged Point on the opposite Virginia shoreline.

Master lighthouse builder John Donahoo constructed the lighthouse and keeper’s quarters for a contracted price of $3,888, according to the St. Mary’s County Museum Division. It was the 10th of 12 lighthouses Donahoo built during his lifetime.

Although the tower is relatively small, its construction was substantial. The circular brick walls measure approximately 3 feet, 10 inches thick at the base, narrowing to about 2 feet, 3 inches near the top.

For generations, its light helped guide vessels traveling between the Chesapeake Bay, Washington and communities along the Potomac.

Today, the National Park Service identifies Piney Point as the first lighthouse built on the river and the last Potomac lighthouse that visitors can still climb. The property is also listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is part of the National Park Service’s Chesapeake Gateways network.

The “Lighthouse Of Presidents”

The lighthouse witnessed more than commercial and maritime traffic. During the 19th and early 20th centuries, Piney Point developed into a popular waterfront retreat for visitors seeking an escape from Washington.

The area was a busy recreation destination between approximately 1820 and 1910, according to the Maryland Historical Trust. President James Monroe maintained a cottage there that became known as the “Summer White House.”

The waterfront community and its hotel attracted politicians, public figures and other prominent visitors, helping the site earn its unofficial nickname, the “Lighthouse of Presidents.”

The Piney Point Hotel remained part of the community until it closed after sustaining damage during the hurricane of 1933. Although the hotel is gone, the lighthouse remains as a physical connection to the period when Piney Point was one of Southern Maryland’s best-known summer destinations.

Piney Point Goes To War

During World War II, the peaceful stretch of the Potomac took on an entirely different purpose.

The U.S. Navy used Piney Point as a torpedo testing range, firing weapons into the river to evaluate their accuracy and performance before they were prepared for military use.

Piney Point’s military history also includes the captured German submarine U-1105. Nicknamed the “Black Panther,” the submarine was covered with a synthetic rubber coating designed to make it more difficult for Allied sonar to detect.

Following World War II, the United States studied the vessel before using it during explosives testing. The submarine was intentionally sunk off Piney Point in 1949, according to the U.S. Coast Guard.

Its wreck remains in the Potomac and was designated Maryland’s first historic shipwreck preserve in 1994. Visitors can learn more about the submarine and the U-1105 Black Panther Historic Shipwreck Preserve through an exhibit at the museum.

Preserving A Local Landmark

The Coast Guard discontinued the lighthouse in 1964 and later transferred the property to the St. Mary’s County Department of Recreation and Parks.

By 1990, the county Museum Division had begun extensive preservation work. The lighthouse was restored, its outbuildings were renovated and continued preservation efforts helped transform the former light station into a public museum and historic park.

In addition to the tower and keeper’s quarters, the property includes exhibits examining local watermen, the Coast Guard, the Navy’s presence in the area and the natural and cultural history of the Potomac River.

A maritime exhibit houses four historic wooden vessels on loan from the Paul Hall Center for Maritime Training and Education. The collection includes the 67-foot skipjack Joy Parks, the 84-foot bugeye Dorothy A. Parsons, a log canoe and a Potomac River dory boat.

Together, the vessels help tell the story of the watermen who depended upon the Potomac for fish, crabs and oysters.

FamilyFest Returns To The Waterfront

The Friends of St. Clement’s Island and Piney Point Museums, in partnership with the St. Mary’s County Museum Division, will present the annual FamilyFest on the Potomac from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sept. 12.

The event will feature live music by Billy Breslin & the Swamp Weasels, children’s activities, food trucks, community vendors and displays. Admission to the museum and lighthouse will also be free during the event.

Although admission is free, museum donations will be accepted.

Free parking will be available at Piney Point Elementary School, with complimentary shuttle service transporting visitors to and from the museum. Public parking will not be available at the museum during FamilyFest, except for vehicles displaying accessible parking permits or placards.

The museum is located at 44720 Lighthouse Road in Piney Point.

Additional information is available by calling the Piney Point Lighthouse Museum at 301-994-1471 or visiting the museum’s Facebook page. Organizations interested in participating as vendors, sponsors or activity providers may contact Janet Cooper at Janet.Cooper@stmaryscountymd.gov.

Nearly two centuries after its light first shone across the Potomac, Piney Point remains more than a surviving maritime landmark. Its grounds preserve the overlapping stories of the lighthouse keepers who maintained the beacon, the watermen who worked the river, the presidents who came seeking rest and the military personnel who transformed the waterfront during wartime.